Vote Tomorrow!

This is a final reminder that Election Day isTOMORROW, November 6. The polls will be open from 6:00 am – 7:00 pm.

If you do not know where you vote, you can find that information on your voter registration card. It is listed under“Voting Location” and will provide the name and address of your polling place. You can also find it online by clicking here.

Like me, I’m sure you’ve all grown tired of the seemingly endless phone calls and commercials, but we only have one more day. Virginia is a critically important state this year, and every vote will matter. This nation is dependent on Virginia, not only to help send Mitt Romney to the White House, but also to help secure a Republican-controlled Senate.

This election in Virginia is going to be a close one right to the end, and we need your vote to send George Allen to the U.S. Senate and bring new leadership to Washington.

George Allen has a record of working hard for the people of Virginia, and he will continue to build on that record in Congress. As Senator, he will make sure that his number one job is fighting for yours, and that is the kind of representation we need.

Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan, as well as George Allen, Bob Goodlatte, and Robert Hurt are counting on your supporttomorrow.

Please remember to go vote and encourage your family and friends to join you. Together, we can be the change Virginia needs.

Please see below for additional information regarding tomorrow’s election. Please forward this to any friends or family members you believe would find it helpful.

Acceptable Forms of Identification

During the 2012 General Assembly Session, changes were made to Virginia’s voter identification laws. Virginia law now requires all voters to provide an acceptable form of identification at the polls. Voters arriving to the polls without ID will be required to vote a provisional ballot and will have until noon the Friday after the election to deliver a copy of identification to their locality’s electoral board in order for their provisional ballot to be counted.

Acceptable forms of identification are as follows:

Virginia voter registration card

Valid Virginia driver's license

Military ID

Any Federal, Virginia state or local government-issued ID

Employer issued photo ID card

Concealed handgun permit

Valid student ID issued by any institution of higher education located in the Commonwealth of Virginia

Current utility bill, bank statement, government check or paycheck indicating the name and address of the voter

Social Security card (*please see below as the social security card does not satisfy special federal ID requirements)

For more information about the new voter id requirements, please click here.

Constitutional Amendments

You are no doubt aware that this year elections are being held for President and Vice President, Senate, and Congress.

Don’t forget that there are also two proposed amendments to the Virginia constitution also on the ballot this year.

Amendment 1

Amendment 1 is the more substantive of the two. It will read:

Shall Section 11 of Article I (Bill of Rights) of the Constitution of Virginia be amended (i) to require that eminent domain only be exercised where the property taken or damaged is for public use and, except for utilities or the elimination of a public nuisance, not where the primary use is for private gain, private benefit, private enterprise, increasing jobs, increasing tax revenue, or economic development; (ii) to define what is included in just compensation for such taking or damaging of property; and (iii) to prohibit the taking or damaging of more private property than is necessary for the public use?

I strongly encourage you to supportthis amendment.

In a 2005 case from Connecticut (Kelo vs. New London), the United State Supreme Court upheld the taking of private property and its transfer to a private business for economic development purposes, and also said that states could restrict the use of eminent domain.

Two years later, the Virginia General Assembly enacted Section 1-29.1 of the Code of Virginia, and set limits on the use of eminent domain powers. The proposed constitutional amendment takes it a step farther. Amendments to the code by the General Assembly can be changed by any future General Assembly. However if the proposed amendment passes, it can only be changed by a future constitutional amendment approved by voters.

The proposed amendment includes the following:

The right to private property is a “fundamental” right.

The taking or damaging of private property must be for a “public use”.

No more property may be taken or damaged than is necessary for the stated public use

A “public service company, public service corporation, or railroad exercises the power of eminent domain for public use when such exercise is for the authorized provision of utility, common carrier, or railroad services.” Elimination of a public nuisance may be a public use. It is not considered public use if the “primary use is for private gain, private benefit, private enterprise, increasing jobs, increasing tax revenue, or economic development.”

Just compensation for property taken is expanded and defined to be“no less than the value of the property taken, lost profits, and lost access, and damages to the residue caused by the taking.”

The burden of proof lies on the entity condemning the property, who must prove that the property is being taken for public use.

I believe that property rights are foundational rights, and I believe this amendment takes a huge step in protecting those rights in Virginia. If you agree, I hope that you will join me in voting “Yes” on Amendment 1.

Amendment 2

Amendment 2 is more technical in nature. It will read:

Shall Section 6 of Article IV (Legislature) of the Constitution of Virginia concerning legislative sessions be amended to allow the General Assembly to delay by no more than one week the fixed starting date for the reconvened or "veto" session when the General Assembly meets after a session to consider the bills returned to it by the Governor with vetoes or amendments?

At the end of every legislative session, the General Assembly is required by the Constitution to meet again or reconvene in a “veto” session. The only bills that the General Assembly can consider in a veto session are bills that passed during the legislative session and that the Governor has sent back to it with his vetoes or suggested amendments.

The constitution now requires that the veto session must begin on the sixth Wednesday following the end of each session. The veto session usually lasts for only one day, and cannot last more than ten days.

The proposed amendment gives the General Assembly the flexibility to delay the start of the veto session for up to one week. This will enable the General Assembly to avoid possible scheduling of the veto session on a religious holiday such as Passover. The proposed amendment does not change the present limits on the business that can be considered or the length of the veto session.

I would encourage you to join me in voting“yes” on this amendment.

Local Registrars’ Offices

If you have additional questions about thetomorrow’s election I would encourage you to contact your local registrar.